a recipe // cold brew cafe

what a sucker for a good coffee i am.  that first sip of a smooth cold brew flavored with pumpkin spiced cream really cannot be beat.  especially right now because it's september and all.  and in september you just do everything pumpkin.  right?  but the price of made-to-order coffee drinks, however, is not something i am a fan of.  i do adore a good chat with a friend at a local coffee shop just as much as the next gal, but i cannot justify spending a crazy amount of money on something i know i can make myself for way less money.  given that andrew and i are living on one income, we are most certainly watching where we spend our money these days.  hence, coffee runs to starbucks does not make much monetary sense for us.  

this week i did a little research and made my own big batch of homemade cold brew coffee and it turned out beautifully.  to be honest, it was so darn affordable to make i do not think i will ever buy another iced coffee whilst out and about.  that is, unless i am in need of an emergency pick-me-up, or an extra five minutes spent under the covers in bed is justifiably more important than pouring coffee and cream into a cup. but that just seems really silly. 

ingredients: 

7 cups of cold water
2 cups of fine ground coffee beans (i used trader joe's french roast beans but any strong bean will do)

to prepare, place the ground coffee in a large container.  gradually add the cold water, stirring gently to make sure all the grounds are moistened.  cover with a layer of cheese-cloth or towel.  let stand at room temperature for 12-15 hours.  try to let the coffee just sit without stirring but if you feel the urge to do so, it shouldn't affect much of anything.  i cheated and stirred it a bit.  

• after 12 hours, remove the cheesecloth and use it to line a fine-mesh sieve set over a large pitcher.  if you did not use cheese cloth, just pour the coffee through a very fine strainer a few times instead.  if you did use cheese-cloth, pour coffee through sieve into pitcher (do not stir).  rinse your jar and set aside.  throw away the cheesecloth with solids.
  
  line same sieve with a large coffee filter and set over reserved jar.  strain coffee through sieve into jar.  (it may take up to 30 minutes for all of the coffee to drip through; do not stir or coffee may become cloudy.)  cover and chill.  this cold brew concentrate can be made 2 weeks ahead and it will be very strong on its own.  
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  my personal pumpkin spiced iced coffee recipe preference:

1 part cold brew concentrate :: 1 part 2% milk :: .5 part 1/2 & 1/2 :: .25 part *pumpkin spiced flavor syrup (a splash is all you need) :: ice cubes 

*i got the archer farms brand at target and it is delish.

this will give you more than enough coffee to last a few weeks and will only cost you a fraction of what you would spend at the coffee shop.  happy sipping!